““Okay, well Max just wanted his heart to keep beating for the thirty seconds without killing him. "You don't care if people like you," he croaked through a suddenly dry throat. Grady pressed back against Max's leg, "You care if people like me." Fuck it, Max really did. Which was ridiculous, really - he was used to being a little too loud, too much, too boisterous, and he did it on purpose to drive off people who couldn't handle him at his real intensity before he could get attached to them. And sure, Max cared what people thought about him. He didn't want people to think he was a jerk, but he accepted that he wasn't going to be everyone's cup of tea. But everyone should love Grady.””
